Man United Survive Roma Scare to Reach Europa League Final After a 5-goal Thriller
- Roma vs Man United second leg meeting witnessed loads of goals just like the first leg
- The hosts sprung a comeback to stun United at Stadio Olimpico, but their three goals were not enough to secure them a place in the Europa League final
- United witnessed a meltdown in halftime when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made changes to his defence
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Manchester United have booked a place in this season's Europa League final after seeing off AS Roma in a two-legged semi-final fixture.
United were looking to make amends to their performance from last season when they were bundled out of the competition in the semis by Sevilla.
And they took a huge step towards progressing to the last round of the tournament following their 6-2 win over the Italian giants in the first leg.
Source: UGC
The Manchester club went on to get the job done in Rome, with Edinson Cavani finding the back of the net twice during the Thursday, May 6, meeting staged at Stadio Olimpico.
The visitors would have David de Gea to thank as the Spanish keeper kept them in the game with outstanding saves during the early exchanges.
Gianluca Mancini had the best chance to score the opener within three minutes but was denied by De Gea.
The shot-stopper was forced to another save five minutes later, sticking out his legs to save Rick Karsdorp's effort.
Cavani, who was also on target in the reverse tie went on to break the deadlock in the 39th minute as he smashed the ball past the keeper after Bruno Fernandes laid it on the plate for him.
Henrik Mkhitaryan should have restored parity shortly after Cavani's opener, but De Gea was well-positioned to fend off the threat.
The resumption of the second half saw the home side wreak havoc in United's defence, with Paulo Fonseca's men scoring twice in quick succession through Edin Dzeko in the 55th minute and Cristante four minutes later.
Cavani went on to restore his side's four-goal cushion as the Uruguayan spanked a downward header past Mirante to make it 8-5 on goal aggregate in the 69th minute.
However, that did not last long as Roma continued their onslaught, with their efforts paying off after Zalewski struck in the 83rd minute to make in 3-2.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men eventually had to settle for a defeat but qualified on an 8-5 goal aggregate.
Solskjaer will be desperate to win the title as it presents the only opportunity for the Old Trafford-based side to end the season with a silverware.
Their most recent triumph in the competition was in 2017 when they won it under the tutelage of Jose Mourinho after seeing off Dutch giants Ajax in the final.
Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that Manchester City star Ruben Dias has been named as the best player in the Premier League so far this season by Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher.
The 23-year-old joined the Citizens from Benfica in a deal of around €68 million last September and he has been superb for the Etihad Stadium outfit since then.
Source: Legit.ng
Babajide Orevba (Sports Editor) Babajide Orevba is a CAF-accredited Nigerian journalist, digital publishing expert, researcher, writer and TV analyst. He has covered several major football tournaments including FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, AFCON, CAF Competitions as well as grassroots competitions within Nigeria. Email: babajide.orevba@corp.legit.ng
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